What’s the point of diversity without inclusion? Not much if you ask me.
As diversity and inclusion consultant Verna Myers says, “Diversity is being invited to a party, inclusion is being asked to dance.”
After all, diversity in the workplace doesn’t add much value if individuals don’t feel a sense of inclusion.
Our summer WeAreHiring Meetup, “D&I: Tactics for a more inclusive workplace,” covers these very issues as diversity and inclusion professionals discuss challenges and brainstorm ideas to for a more inclusive workplace.
So mark your calendar now — August 22 at 5:30 pm. We’re hosting this meetup in our new SmartRecruiters HQ (225 Bush Street, Suite 300, San Francisco, CA).
We’ll have plenty of food and a great discussion in a format that allows for a fascinating and engaging exchange of ideas.
For this MeetUp, we’re inviting a few experts to deliver a very short presentation (about 10 minutes each) and then participate in what’s sure to be a worthwhile Q&A session to explore various nuances on this essential issue.
Among others, you’ll hear from:
- Ilit Raz, CEO of Joonko, the first AI-powered diversity and inclusion coach for companies, which can identify and solve unconscious bias in real time.
- Benjamin Bustamente, Manager of Employment Services at The SF LGBT Center, where he helps LGBT job seekers and is known a “bridge” by many colleagues because of his ability to work with diverse individuals and teams.
- Ciara Trinidad, Head of Diversity & Inclusion at Lever, where she helps make sure the company offers an inclusive environment for all employees to work, grow, and develop.
- Sandi Lurie, Senior Director of Global Recruiting at Optimizely, who manages global recruitment and talent acquisition initiatives – and was LinkedIn’s Head of Talent for Marketing, Success and G&A.
- Brandon Davis, Division Director, Assistant VP at The Creative Group, a leading staffing agency that connects creative professionals to jobs.
Why isn’t diversity enough?
When work gets personal, diversity doesn’t add value unless there’s an emphasis on inclusiveness, too. Given the turmoil that’s surrounded some of these issues in the past few weeks, you may have missed some news about a very revealing recent Deloitte survey.
That survey found that 72 percent of working Americans may consider leaving an organization to join another they think is more inclusive. And 30 percent of Millennials say they’ve already moved to a new job because it offered a more inclusive culture.
While diversity is more easily measured, inclusiveness has a certain “feel” to it according to Deloitte. For example, the survey found that when employees left one organization for one that seemed more inclusive:
- 33 percent indicated they did not feel comfortable being themselves at their previous workplace
- 28 percent replied not feeling comfortable speaking up and expressing opinions, not experiencing inclusive day-to-day interactions and not being in an environment that provided a sense of purpose or impact
- Only 12 percent cited specific diversity of demographic groups as a reason they left a previous organization for a more inclusive one.
So join us August 22 at 5:30 pm for our next WeAreHiring MeetUp — and see our new SmartRecruiters HQ at 225 Bush Street, Suite 300 in San Francisco.
Enjoy some great food – and food for thought on how organizations can take full advantage of diversity by making sure inclusion is also invited to the party (and asked to dance!)
